


Blackout

by excessiveprepositionalphrases



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Friend-Insert, Gen, Power Outage, Self-Insert, blackout - Freeform, filling the "julian bashir being comforting" shaped hole in everyone's hearts, it stars me and friends, it's fluffy, this is my spare time right now, you know the kind of stuff I write by now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-29
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:22:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24435823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/excessiveprepositionalphrases/pseuds/excessiveprepositionalphrases
Summary: A complete blackout on DS9 affects all our heroes differently, but they can all agree on one thing: wherever Julian Bashir is is the place to be.
Relationships: Julian Bashir & Original Characters
Comments: 29
Kudos: 19
Collections: Deep Space Discord Literary Universe





	1. Chapter 1

Ari had a wild Cardassian Flayer wrapped around their neck. They usually had an animal wrapped around some limb or other, but this afternoon, the animal in question was of the more dangerous variety. The fluffy, purple, lemur-like creature was hovering on their shoulder, its long tail wrapped around their neck, chittering rapidly and eating a makka nut. Ari was sitting on the second level of the promenade, their feet dangling over the edge. They were keenly aware that most everyone was giving them a wide berth after seeing the animal on their shoulder.

The Cardassian Flayer was one of the most dangerous animals in the quadrant, owing mostly to its deceptively adorable appearance. It was vicious, and venomous, its saliva containing a neurotoxin that could take out even the heftiest Klingon. This particular flayer, however, seemed to have taken a liking to Ari, and was more than happy to sit on their shoulder and eat nuts, the shells falling with an audible plink onto the floor of the promenade below. Ari was always ready to take on any Cardassian fauna they could - since the opportunities for studying them were so few and far between, even the dangerous ones were worth the risk. They were considering keeping this flayer as a pet, as it had a minor leg injury. The flayers were as vicious to each other as they were to all other living things, and one showing even the slightest weakness would be murdered unceremoniously by the pack. They thought they might name it Gamma - and hoped it might be friends with Delta the quoll.

* * *

Irena was lounging blissfully on her sofa. She had her hair in curlers wrapped in a bright blue scarf, which perfectly matched her custom made Tholian silk pajamas. After laying a hand on the disappointing synthetic silk her old set had been made out of, Garak had surprised her with some new ones – a 1940s pattern made with the real thing. She was sipping on a small, fruity cocktail, and she had her feet squarely in the lap of the tailor who was responsible for the aforementioned pajamas. At that moment, he was very precisely painting her toenails.

“You alright tonight?” she asked, sensing her friend’s discomfort without meaning to. Garak didn’t answer.

“Garak?” Irena repeated. “I’ll paint yours next, if you want?”

“I’m just fine, my dear. I so enjoy these evenings we have,” Garak said, affecting an unconvincing smile.

Irena debated pressing him, but resisted. She wanted to say _don’t lie to a betazoid,_ but she knew that would just make him uncomfortable. She wanted to ask him what he was thinking and what about the doctor he was thinking, and if there was anything she could do to help him. Instead she turned her attention to the old fashioned television she had replicated, and the several hundred year old film playing on it. Tonight’s choice was _Rope_ , the latest in Irena’s quest to show Garak every Alfred Hitchcock film ever made. They both agreed that Hitchcock had not been a particularly good human, but something about his films seemed to interest Garak, and Irena had been so surprised and overjoyed to find a piece of human art Garak seemed to actually like she had immediately made a project of it. They were about halfway through the filmography, usually taking them in like this, on period appropriate viewing technology, and accompanied by drinks, conversation, and a little bit of self care – tonight, it was pedicures. Irena wondered how she’d managed to get someone like Garak to even agree to something that was essentially a sleepover, but after the second film he had begun reminding _her_ of their standing weekly date, and she’d realized he was enjoying the evenings even more than she did. But tonight he seemed elsewhere. Even when he was apparently following the film his eyes appeared unfocused on the screen. He had something else on his mind, and Irena knew it was probably Julian. What she didn’t know, though, was what to do about it.

* * *

Robertson was sitting on the infirmary floor, padds all around them. They were working their way through their 3rd presentation, making notes the whole way. They were doing their best to tune out the subtle anxiety in the back of their mind that came with being in the infirmary at all. That was part of why they were here, specifically, after all. They had gotten into a conversation with Julian about their phobia of doctors and hospitals and anything related, and after gently confirming that they weren’t afraid of him, he’d suggested they come spend some time in the infirmary, just hanging out. Maybe, he’d suggested, getting used to the space might help them be more comfortable with it, and not associate it only with fear. Julian was preparing to attend a medical conference in a few weeks so here they were, sitting on the infirmary floor, reading his prepared presentations, making corrections, and getting some infirmary exposure therapy along the way. They’d found they were getting used to Julian’s presence, and especially after his rescue from the Cardassian prison, found a certain amount of comfort in it. His being only a few feet away, combined with having the papers focus on, meant that this “hanging out in the infirmary” idea was turning out to be much less frightening than they had anticipated, and they were finding themselves almost relaxed. Not quite, but almost. Julian’s presentations were filled with typos and run on sentences and phrases bound to accidentally offend some culture or other, and they had their work cut out for them.

Julian himself was sitting on one of the biobeds, reading a paper off the padd in his free hand. His other arm was wrapped around Susan, who was cuddled up to him, head on his chest, fast asleep. It was a cozy, sleepy 2100 hours, and the computer technician who had simply stopped by to say goodnight had ended up curled up one of the biobeds, snoring. Looking for somewhere comfortable to read his paper, he’d ended up there as well, and it hadn’t taken much time at all for the woman to wrap her arms around his waist and snuggle close to him. She seemed to end up asleep on him fairly often, but he didn’t mind in the least. He did wonder, as he softly stroked her hair, why _he_ seemed to attract so much of this. He didn’t exactly have himself together. His job, he was good at. Anything else? He was a decent aim with a phaser, a competent officer…but comfort? He was usually frightened himself. He never quite felt secure in anything. He always did his best, sure, but he didn’t exactly see himself as a towering figure of stability. But, much to his own confusion (and satisfaction), everyone else…seemed to? He certainly tried to project an air of comfort and safety. Every doctor did; it was part of the job. But he’d found that none of his colleagues ever seemed to find it effective. He’d had long conversations with all of them about how to comfort people, how to make people feel safe – and shared every bit of advice he had. But his colleagues always seemed to report that it never quite worked, even if their methods were much the same as his own. Even the kindest doctors he knew reported high levels of patient anxiety they couldn’t get down no matter what they did, elevated heart rates and blood pressures and other patient symptoms presenting on every examination or procedure, general avoidance of their infirmaries and sickbays by their crews. And sure, Julian had plenty of anxious patients – the schoolteacher seated on the floor proofreading his presentations was a notable case. But even the ones who seemed twinged with medical anxiety still seemed to turn to him for comfort in other areas, and in general he often found a friend or two hanging out in his infirmary simply because they seemed to want to be there. Susan was, at that moment, hanging onto his waist like her life depended on it. He very briefly lifted his hand from her head to brush his own hair out of his eyes, and she jumped slightly, and made a small noise. He laughed a little and returned to stroking her hair.

“Don’t worry, I’m still here,” he whispered.

“Mmmphhmmmm,” she drowsily grumbled in reply.


	2. Chapter 2

I was half asleep when the noise stopped. Even at its quietest, the station was never silent. Everywhere on the station you could hear the persistent low rumble in the background. I’d gotten so used to that rumble that I’d found I couldn’t sleep planetside anymore. It was too quiet. I needed that sound, whirring in the background. And then it stopped. I sat straight up on my sofa and tapped my combadge. There was a distinctive lack of a _chirp._

“Computer?” I said, already knowing I would get only silence in reply. I stood cautiously from the sofa and tested my balance in the impenetrable darkness. The problem with being on a space station was that all the light was artificial, so when it got dark, it got _really_ dark. The nearby planets radiated the smallest hints of light, but the station was designed to “fail closed” – and in the event of a full power loss, all the windows were immediately covered with blast shutters. So I was standing in the center of my room, hovering next to the sofa, unable to see anything at all. I reached for my combadge again, fully intending to bother the Chief, before I realized my mistake. It sunk in slowly that I had no communications, and no way to contact anyone. My best bet, then, would be to try and get to a place the others were likely to look for me. I realized that we’d never established somewhere to meet if something like this occurred. OPS seemed the reasonable choice, and I had already decided to make my way there when I banged my shin into the edge of a table in the dark. I cursed aloud. _Wonder if I just bruised the bone,_ I thought, and then promptly changed my destination. OPS. Really? Thinking anyone would look for me there was a major failure in self-awareness.

If anyone went looking for me in a crisis, I realized, the first place they would head would be the infirmary.

* * *

The power cut was so sudden that despite being asleep, even Susan jumped, and tightened her arms around Julian as she did.

“What in the hell just happened?” she asked, climbing towards consciousness.

“I haven’t the faintest idea,” Julian answered. “Computer, what’s going on?”

Silence.

He tapped his combadge.

“Bashir to Sisko?”

“Bashir to Security?”

“Doctor Bashir to anyone who can hear me?”

Nothing. He blinked slowly, willing his eyes to adjust to the pitch blackness. Part of the package with his augmentations had been his vision, and while it wasn’t exactly the super powered night vision he would have at that moment been very happy for it to be, he could still see a surprisingly well in the complete darkness.

“Can either of you see at all?” he asked.

“No even kind of. That’s an odd question, anyway. It’s completely black.” Susan said.

“I’ve got night vision, to an extent. It’s not that dark to me, so I don’t exactly know what you guys are seeing,” Julian explained. He glanced down at his friend on the floor, who was still sitting cross legged, clearly processing the situation.

“Rob? Are you alright?” Julian asked. Robertson looked up at him, and slowly shook their head. A strange look crossed their face, as they realized that it was too dark to see a shaken head. The expression slowly shifted to panic.

Julian turned to Susan. “You good?” he asked quickly, the situation apparently denting his normally aristocratic speech patterns.

“I’m fine,” Susan said. She wasn’t exactly a fan of the dark, but she had no major issues with it. Julian nodded gratefully and climbed off the bed, slowly approaching Robertson.

“I know you can’t see me at all, but I’m kneeling in front of you,” he said, doing exactly that. “Hold out your hands. You’ll be reaching towards me.”

They did, and Julian squeezed their hands tightly.

“Can you speak?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Would it be easier to sign?”

“Yes, but –”

“It’s not that dark, to my eyes. Night vision was part of the augmentations. I can still see. So you can sign – I can still understand.”

Robertson switched to sign language.

_“Do you have any idea what happened?”_

“Not the slightest. You’re not big on the dark, are you?”

_“No.”_

“Alright. Let’s get you out of the middle of the floor. I have a feeling we’re going to have more guests and I do _not_ want you getting tripped over! Give me your hands again, I’ll help you.”

Robertson cracked a weak smile, and willingly offered their hands again. Julian helped them off the floor and over to the side of the room, next to the bed Susan was still sitting on.

“If you reach out, you’ll be touching a wall,” he said. They did, and promptly sat back against it. Julian took his place again, kneeling in front of them.

“Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable?” he asked.

 _“Light”_ they signed.

“I think I have some emergency lights somewhere. I’m going to go look around. I’ll be right back, okay?”

He started to stand when Robertson grabbed his hand.

“Please don’t go anywhere,” they said.

“I have to agree with Rob,” said Susan, who was now pacing the floor. “We don’t know what’s going on. For all we know, we’re under some kind of attack. Either that or Miles is falling down on the job, but we’re probably in some amount of danger. I’d feel safer if you stay close.”

* * *

“Garak?” Irena said. She sounded concerned. Garak had grabbed her leg when the lights went out, and she could feel his hand, anxiously twisting around her ankle. She knew the dark was not something Garak was a fan of.

“I’m still here, my dear” Garak answered, his own voice shaky and weak.

“It’s just the power,” she reassured him. He didn’t answer, but she could feel his heart pounding in his hand.

“Garak?” she repeated, sensing his fear. “The walls are not closing in on you. You’re still in my quarters. It’s dark. Nothing more.”

“I think we should go find Julian,” she said. “That might make us both feel a little more secure.”

“I think…that’s a very sound idea, my dear. He may have some backup generators in the infirmary.”

“Exactly! Let’s see if we can locate your doctor.”

“…I seem to be unable to move.”

Irena stood from the sofa and teetered carefully between it and the table in front of it, until she felt her leg brush up upon Garak’s knee. She reached out to him, grabbing him by the shoulders.

“Come on, take my hands,” she said. Garak grabbed her arms at the elbow, sliding his hands down her arms until he had her hands wrapped in his. She could feel his emotions even more keenly like this, and it pained her to feel his panic.

“You’re be alright,” she said. “I’ll take you down to the infirmary. If you’re moving through the room, maybe it won’t feel like the walls are closing in.”

Garak hesitated, but considered that she might be right, and stood, holding onto her hands the whole time. She was indeed right, and after he took a few steps into the dark, his brain was forced to accept that there were no walls closing in on him. He braced himself for the experience, and followed his friend out of the room.


	3. Chapter 3

I had joked before that I would be able to find my way to the infirmary with my eyes closed, but as I counted my steps in the darkened hallways, I was testing that theory. It crossed my mind that Julian might already be off duty and asleep. I reminded myself that the main reason I was headed to the infirmary wasn’t to find Julian, but that I suspected my friends, and Miles, would probably look for me there. I couldn’t help thinking, though, that I sort of wanted to give up and beeline for Julian’s quarters instead. No, I reminded myself. Logical choices, not hunting for Julian. I wasn’t exactly frightened of dark, but I couldn’t stop my brain from running over every scenario that could have caused the blackout and the danger we could be in. I wasn’t scared of the dark, I repeated to myself. This was the kind of problem I could never admit to being anxious about. I could never shake the feeling that I had to appear strong, unshakable, all of the time. That wasn’t reasonable, of course, and I knew it. But it was internalized, a little bit of Klingon in my soul. Julian always saw through it and helped just by _being there_ , and as I clanked down the stairs to the promenade I silently prayed that I wasn’t going to find the infirmary empty.

The promenade was surprisingly low on foot traffic. I had expected most of the station’s residents to descent upon it in search of answers, but there were only a few Bajoran civilians and Starfleet engineers roaming around with flashlights. I approached the open door of the infirmary, reaching a hand into the darkness.

“…some amount of danger. I’d feel safer if you stay close,” Susan was saying. I stepped cautiously into the room, shuffling across the floor to make sure I wasn’t stepping on anything, or anyone.

“Julian, you better be somewhere in this room,” I said.

“Right here,” Julian’s voice said from somewhere to my left.

“Thank heaven.”

“And Rob and I!” Susan added.

“Can you do me a small favor?” Julian asked.

“Anything.”

“Do you know where the emergency chests are?”

“I think so?” I said.

“There’s some lanterns and flashlights in there. If you can find them in the dark, of course. I’d look for them myself, but I’m currently occupied.”

“On it.”

I shuffled across the floor, through the infirmary and into the empty, and equally dark, operating theatre that made up the back half of the space. I felt my way down the walls, and to the manual override for the door to the supply closet in the back corner.

More working by feel – door open, down to the chests on the floor, open the chests, and dig. It didn’t take long to dig out a couple of flashlights, glow sticks, and lanterns. I turned on one of the lanterns and returned with my spoils in my arms.

“You found them!” Julian said happily as I appeared. I set up the lanterns around the room, and passed out flashlights. The cozy, dim light filling the room, I was finally able to take in the state of everyone.

Susan was pacing the floor muttering to herself.

“This is absolutely ridiculous,” she was saying. “Probably Miles just missed something, and what? We’re all here in the dark? If that man is the reason I don’t get my coffee, I-”

Robertson was seated against the wall, next to Julian. They looked as if they were resisting melting into him completely, but he had his arm firmly around their shoulders, softly rubbing their arm. They looked as if they were coming down the other side of a panic event, and seemed to be significantly more comfortable now that they were holding a flashlight.

“How about you?” Julian asked me, as I joined the company on the floor.

“I’m fine, for once. I’m kind of okay with the dark. Especially with the lanterns. This is rather cozy.”

“I’m starting to agree,” Rob said, beginning to smile a little. “The lanterns are nice. And with this much light, I might even be able to go back to proofreading!”

They grabbed one of the padds that was still in the middle of the floor, and began reading it in the dim light. “You’ve really got to work on these run-on sentences, Doctor,” they said. Julian smiled – partly laughing at the joke, and clearly party relieved Rob was starting to perk up a bit. Susan, on the other hand, was still pacing and muttering.

“This is EXACTLY how I wanted to spend my evening, without replicators, without light –”

“Susan?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you actually alright?” asked Julian, blinking slowly and looking at her under his brows.

“…No,” she whispered.

“I didn’t think so.”

“What if we’re under attack, you know? The dark isn’t the issue. The station’s never had a power event like this. Some stuff has broken, sure, but all the power on the station?”

“That’s what I’m thinking too,” I said. “For all we know the Cardassians are just working their way through the station, picking people off…”

“I’m certain that’s not the case,” Julian said. “If we were under attack we would know by now. It’s probably just a technical issue. We’ll be back on before you know it.”

“If we’re under attack, I’m hiding behind you,” I said.

“If we’re really under attack, I hope you’ll all be hiding behind me.”

“How very, very typical of you, Doctor!” said Garak from the doorway. We all looked up at him and smiled. He was with Irena, and while she looked mostly content, Garak had panic in his eyes.

“I see this is the place to be!” Irena said brightly.

Susan waved her hand in the direction of the lanterns. “We are the ones with the lights, after all!”

Irena and Garak took their own places on the floor, with Garak sticking close to Julian. He didn’t say anything, but rested his hand gently on Garak’s knee. They shared a knowing look. Unlike Irena, I wasn’t any kind of telepath, but it was wasn’t difficult to imagine what they were thinking.

Irena settled in next to me. “That was all he needed,” she whispered, looking fondly at Garak.

“Hmm?”

“He’s been distracted all night, but I feel it subsiding now. I think he just needed to be close to the doctor.”

“Don’t we all?”

The room was getting louder, but it was impossible to stop watching Garak and Julian. They weren’t actually taking to each other – Julian was talking to Robertson, who was pointing out some mistake or other in his writing to him, and Garak was talking to Susan about the best way to make Raktajino. But Julian had his hand on Garak’s knee, and was rubbing it softly with his thumb. There was a warmth between them that everyone could feel. Garak still looked a little panicked, his eyes much larger than they would have otherwise been, and Julian seemed tapped into his feelings.

“We should play a game!” Julian said suddenly, all excitement and big eyes.

“Truth or dare?” I said. The whole room looked at me like I had taken leave of my good sense. “I’m kiiiiidding!” I was forced to add.

“Charades?” Irena suggested. I felt a pang of social anxiety in my stomach and shot Julian a look that said _for the love of god, get me out of this._

“Anyone else a decent hand at shadow puppets?” Julian asked, reading my glance perfectly.

“I am!” Kira answered from the doorway. Stepping into the room were a few more friends for our party: Kira & Ahna, clearly sticking close together in the dark, and Ari, a strange, fluffy, purplish animal on their shoulder.

“I was going to bed to wait it out, but it looked like there was much more fun to be had here!” they said. Garak took one look at the creature and drew subtly, but noticeably, closer to Julian.

“Whatever is on your shoulder, he’s very cute,” Rob said with a smile.

Ari patted the head of the small animal. “It’s a flayer. They’re very dangerous, but this one seems to like me. We’re becoming friends.”

“I would appreciate it if you kept that…thing as far away from me as possible, my dear.”

Ari smiled affectionately at Garak’s anxious request. “Of course, Garak,” she said, and took a spot on the floor on the opposite side of the circle. Kira and Ahna filled the spaces in between.

“We spent lots of time in the dark during the occupation,” Kira explained. “We made lots and lots of shadow puppets.”

“I do believe you’ve just volunteered to go first,” Julian said with a broad grin.

Kira placed her hands between a lantern and the wall, and arranged them into a complex shape. We all stared at it, heads tilted in confusion, before it came clear like a magic eye.

“It’s the defiant!” Irena said, figuring it out only a split second before the rest of us.

The game only expanded from there: Ahna made a fantastically convincing elephant, Susan produced a wonderful dog, Rob a very detailed swan, and Julian a very quality turtle. Garak & Ari both presented a wide selection of Cardassian animals, which only the other recognized. It was as much fun to watch them go back and forth with each other as it was to participate. The best part, really, was watching Garak. As he joked and laughed, he seemed to relax. The looks on everyone's faces suggested that everyone in the room was as invested in Garak's comfort as Julian was. We got so into their game we almost didn’t notice M limping in the door.

“I came because I banged my knee. I didn’t know there was a party!” she said with a smile. Julian jumped into action, unfolding himself from the floor and helping her onto the biobed.

“How did it happen?” he asked her.

“Fumbling around in the dark, you know the deal,” she said.

“Ahna?”

“Yes sir?”

Julian laughed. “I don’t think you need to call _me_ ‘Sir’.”

Ahna blushed. “…Sorry.”

“That’s quite alright. There’s a tricorder on the console behind you. Could you hand it to me?”

Ahna willingly assisted, and handed the tricorder to Julian. It was a simple action, but I watched the device as it was handed between them. Their hands touched a little as they did, and Ahna blushed. I couldn’t help but smile. It was the face almost everyone made when they got closer than they expected to Julian.

* * *

“Hey.”

Julian’s voice was soft in my ear. I opened one eye. It was still a warm, cozy dark in the infirmary. Most of the group had laughed themselves to sleep, and there were now sleeping bodies piled on the floor. Julian was kneeling over me, Kukalakka conspicuously tucked under his arm.

“You’ve had him the whole time, haven’t you?” I asked. Julian looked sheepish.

“Maybe.”

“You’re my favorite. I hope you know that.”

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’m very secure on that front.”

I affected an expression of annoyance. “Anyway, why are you waking me up? Lemme sleep. It’s time for sleepy.”

“I’ve woken everyone up. I just wanted you to know that Miles stopped by and told me they’ve figured out what caused the blackout. Apparently some metallic components in the central core eroded and broke a circuit. He says the power should be back by morning.”

“Thanks. Does that mean I have to leave?”

“No one else has.”

“Good.”

“Actually, that’s why I woke you up last. You’re the only person not snuggled up to someone. I thought you might want some company.”

“Shouldn’t you be snuggling with Garak?”

Julian put on a face of mock offense. “I’m sorry, are you complaining?”

“No, no!” I laughed. “Of course not. I’d just feel bad, keeping you away from your beloved.”

“He’s very well cared for, I assure you,” Julian said softly. I turned to look at Garak. He was curled up on the floor, a couple of pillows under his head. Roberston was curled around his back and Irena was curled up in front of him, and the whole warm pile seemed very content, small smiles on all their faces.

“Well in that case, my conscience is clear,” I said with a smile. Julian handed me a pillow that was behind him on the floor. I tucked it under my head, and Julian laid down on the floor next to me, and I wrapped myself around him.

“There is one thing I want to know, though, before you fall asleep,” he said, putting his arm around me and pressing his hand into the side of my face. “Why did everyone end up here?”

“Because you’re warm,” I said drowsily. Julian brushed my hair off my forehead.

“Not _you_. I know why you’re here. I knew you’d end up here as soon as the lights went out. But everyone else did too. Sure, some of them stopped to check out the party, but they all stayed.”

“It’s you,” I answered. “We just want to be close to you.”

“ _All_ of you?”

“More or less, yes. Pretty much everyone”

I opened one eye and saw that Julian had Kukalakka tucked under his other arm.

“I’m scared too, though,” he whispered. “I don’t have all the answers. I’m just huddling in the dark with a teddy bear, just like the rest of you.”

“It doesn’t matter. You just have an aura of safety.”

“Is that why you’re definitely starting to talk in your sleep?”

“Noooooo…not…hmmmph.”

* * *

Odo wasn’t sure what he was going to find when he took to the promenade when the lights came back on at 0500. Looting, theft, anything was possible. He was happy to find that none of those things had taken place, and the promenade was almost exactly as he had left it. The real surprise came when he stepped into the infirmary. He’d been fully expecting to find the space empty. Instead, he found the floor littered with sleeping people. Garak was asleep in the corner, with Robertson and Irena wrapped around him. Kira was asleep on her back, one arm extended. Her Bajoran companion Ahna was asleep next to her, her hand resting on Kira’s arm. Ari and M were asleep next to them, Ari’s leg tossed over M’s, and M’s hand was on Ari’s arm. Ari had a purple, lemur like creature asleep on their chest. Susan was next to him, one arm over M’s back, and the other hand resting on Julian’s arm. Julian was asleep on his back, with Savannah on top of him. Everyone had a pillow and a blanket, everyone had at least one limb touching someone they loved.

And every single person, even in their sleep, was smiling.


End file.
